Question:
I am a little confused by some of the postings that I have read in the archieve

concerning the amount of food a person with WLS can consume at a meal. I had the RNY procedure done and I am only able to take in 60cc (2ozs) at a time. But I have seen postings where WLS patients talk about eating 4-6 ozs at a time or am I reading them wrong is this a daily total or actually one meal. If so what type of surgery was done.    — ann A. (posted on May 11, 2000)

May 11, 2000
Ann: I do good to get in 3 1/2 oz a meal most time 3 oz is my tops..Like some have said though somedays I can eat 3 1/2 some days 2 1/2 so depends.. However, I have never eaten over 3 1/2 oz a meal... Now drinking that's a diffrent matter I can drink my 6oz of protein drink zip down the hatch in no time flat..but I'm told that liquids goes in the pouch and out rather quickly, so at any one given time probably never over 2 oz... Everyone is diffrent though depends on size of pouch, type of surgery etc.. So am not to confuse anyone... <p> I'm open divided proximal RNY 12/8/99..Beginning weight 367 now 260..pounds melting off.. For more information and links visit my profile page..
   — Victoria B.

May 11, 2000
Ann, 5 months ago I had the Ds, and today for lunch I ate most of a MacDonald's Cheeseburger. I can also eat most of a Taco Bell taco. Not at the same meal, of course! DS patients have stomachs that usually hold 4-6oz. 3/4 cup of cottage cheese completely fills me. In time I'll be able to eat more. Like you, our smaller stomachs help us lose the bulk of the excess weight, but our distal bypass is what enables us to maintain our losses, even though we're eventually able to eat like a normal, skinny person. So, normally, if you see a recent post-op talking about eating 4-6oz at a time, chances are it's a DS patient.
   — Duffy H.

May 11, 2000
Hi Ann, I think it depends on alot of things -- what kind of surgery you had, and the original size of the pouch the doctor made being the biggies. Also, it depends on our physiology. Just like some people have skin which is either more or less elastic, some people's new stomachs are more or less elastic and allow for more or less food, or take longer to stretch. For example, I was told that my 1 ounce pouch should have stretched to 3 or so ounces by now (11 weeks out) but I can still eat only 1 1/2 ounces at the very most. Also, there are things people can do to stretch the pouch prematurely, like drinking alot of water with your food, or overstuffing yourself and not paying attention to how much you're eating. Personally, I don't want my pouch to stretch this early on, as I had the lap proximal RNY and I want to get in as much of the "restrictive" process of this weight loss that I can -- My surgeon did say that my 1 ounce pouch will eventually stretch to 6-8 ounces over time, and that this is still about a 4th of the size of most "normal" people's stomachs.
   — Elizabeth M.